Machine to Machine (M2M) refers to all technologies and means for establishing a connection between machines. The concept of M2M has been proposed in the 1990s but is only remained at a theoretical stage. Networking of machines implemented by using mobile communication technologies becomes possible due to the development of mobile communication technologies after 2000. An M2M service has emerged on the market around 2002, and has become a focus of attention of numerous communication equipment suppliers and telecom operators after the rapid development of the subsequent years. At present, the competition in telecommunication market is increasingly fierce, accompanied with the continuous reduction in telecom price and the profit margin of operators. Moreover, the human-based communication market is getting saturated. In this case, the M2M means a brand-new development opportunity for operators.
Researches on application scenarios of M2M communication show that the implementation of M2M communication on a mobile network has a potential market prospect. However, as an M2M service has many new requirements on a system, to enhance the competitiveness of mobile networks in this aspect, it is necessary to optimize existing mobile networks to provide more effective support for M2M communication.
Mainly designed for Human to Human (H2H) communication, existing mobile architecture networks are not optimal for M2M communication or human to machine communication. Besides, how to provide an M2M communication service at a low cost is also a key to success in deployment of M2M communication.
Based on the above situation, it is necessary to put forward a solution to the support of mobile networks to M2M communication, by using which the existing networks may be reused best and the influence caused by a great amount of M2M communication on networks as well as the complexity of operation and maintenance may be reduced.
To use mobile network resources effectively, the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has proposed Machine Type Communication (MTC), that is, services for M2M and machine to human communications, which is far beyond conventional H2H communication in service range and is greatly difference from existing H2H communication modes in access control, charging, security, Quality of Service (QoS), service mode and the like.
Device to Device (D2D) communication refers to direct communication between devices being in proximity to each other, such as Bluetooth devices. On account of lack of network management and control, an unlicensed spectrum, such as 2.4 GHz, is generally used in D2D communication. With the rapid popularization of smart phones, many new applications arise, such as position-based applications and social applications. In a mobile architecture network, the communication between UEs must be implemented by a network, even for two devices being in proximity to each other, as shown in FIG. 1. This is because a network operator needs to manage and control a licensed spectrum by using which communication is implemented between two communication parties through a network which is indispensable for the communication for the sake of the resource scheduling for communication activities, the charging for the communication activities and the management on the communication activities. At present, the idea of direct communication between devices being in proximity to each other, as shown in FIG. 2, has been put forward to reduce network load. The direct communication between MTC devices is also needed in MTC, for example, in a capillary network, the communication between MTC devices and between an MTC device and a gateway are required. Furthermore, the 3GPP is also carrying on research on D2D communication.
During researching and experiencing existing technologies, the present inventor has found the following problems in the existing technologies: who should make a decision on whether to adopt D2D communication; how to control the D2D communication by using a licensed spectrum by a network; how to deal with the situation that devices to be communication are out of the coverage of a proximity area where direct D2D communication is available; and the like. No solution to the above problems has been proposed.